Faded Memories
by RedWords
Summary: Ruki once lived with Shigure, Yuki, and Kyo, until the threat of Akito became so scary that she had to escape. Now 17, Ruki is back at Shigure's front door, hoping she will be accepted back into the family as if she never left. Ruki the Blessed Cat.
1. Prologue

Faded Memories

A Fruits Basket Story

Prologue

I stare at the front door of the memorable house. I have been sitting in the bushes all day and I am still debating telling them. This morning some girl came to their house and Yuki walked her to school. Around noon Kyo showed up and now I am waiting for Yuki to arrive from school.

When Yuki finally walks up to the door I stand up from my hiding place. When I get out of the bushes and look at the door I hear screaming and see Kyo fly through one of the house's walls. Immediately I jump back into the bushes to hide. I watch Kyo stand up a few yards away and run back into the house.

"Well, at least I know nothing has changed," I whisper to myself as I, once again climb out of the bushes. I walk up to the front door and raise my hand to knock. I sway a little before I force myself to knock.

"Come in," I hear Shigure shout.

The familiar unsure feeling that I have companied with returning to this house rises inside of me, making me want to return to the bushes. If I tell them I have returned their lives could change forever. I turn back to the door and shove it open.

I look up and see Yuki, Kyo, and Shigure staring at me. The look on their faces somehow lets me know my action was the right thing. I look between the three of them and say, "I'm home."


	2. Chpt 1: Home Sweet Home!

Chapter One

Home Sweet Home!

"Ruki, is that you?" Shigure asks as I walk closer to them.

"Yep, I've come home, or have you given my room away?"

Kyo stares at me in disbelief. "But, you said that you were-"

I cut Kyo off, "I know I had said I was leaving forever, but that didn't work out so well. I am home now and I am not leaving ever again!"

Yuki catches my eye. "Does Akito know?" he asks.

I shake my head and look at Shigure. "Promise me you won't tell him." Everyone is silent and then they nod. "Okay, now that that is settled, how 'bout I make us some dinner?"

…

After everyone is finished eating I walk up to my old room and look around. I find that all my furniture was thrown out. The only thing in the room is a mirror. I look at my reflection for a moment. My hair has a thin layer of dirt covering it and looks off white instead of white. My face has bruises and scars on it from the five years of living in the mountains. My eyes are bloodshot, but they still have red irises. My clothes are torn, so overall, I look like a hobo.

It is hard to believe it has been five years since I was in civilization. My memories of living with Shigure when I was young are faded. I am definitely no longer the little eleven-year old that fled to the mountains years ago to escape Akito's punishment. I know why he wants me dead though, I am supposed to be the Head of the Family, but my curse let Akito stay the Head. When he passes away I can move up to my rightful place, but until then I am going to stay invisible.

"You know, you look like crap."

I look at Kyo. "You know exactly what every girls loves hearing, don't you."

"But you're not a girl, you're a Ruki."

"That's it!" I run at him and take a swing. It hits him in the gut and I fall over laughing.

"You're on." Kyo swings at me but I react quick enough to roll out of the way and get back on my feet.

I feel the punch before I realize one was thrown. I buckle over from the hit in the stomach; I never took that kind of hit well, and I still don't. I pull myself together and charge at Kyo, tackling him to the ground. Just as Kyo throws me off him Shigure calls us down to the dining room.

"Okay, so let's get this straight, Ruki you were in the mountains for five years," I nod, "and Kyo you were in the mountains for a while," Kyo nods, "so why didn't you two ever bump into each other?"

I stare at Shigure for a moment. "Um…the mountains are really big. It's not like a mountain is small…"

"How stupid are you! You don't even know if we were in the same mountains!" Kyo hits Shigure on the head.

"Yep, I'm home. All we need to do is knock down a wall and almost kill Kyo and we'll pick up where we left off five years ago," I say half serious, half sarcastic.

Yuki chuckles. "I like that idea."

"I think you can wait until tomorrow to destroy the house. Ruki you need to clean up first," Shigure says and I walk up stairs to go clean up.

**Yep, that was the real chapter one. I am still figuring out how to work this website… Too confusing.**

**Review! :)**


	3. Chpt 2: The Blessed One

Chapter Two

The Blessed One

"I have to go to school?"

Shigure smiles, "Yes, you do. You will go take the entrance exam with Kyo today."

I hear some bangs and turn to see Kyo lying at the bottom of the staircase. "Wait, what! I have to start school too!"

"Yes, Kyo, you must attend school as well," Shigure says.

…

Kyo and I stand in the school office, waiting for our turn to take the entrance exam. I sit down in a chair and watch Kyo pace back and forth.

"Ruki Sohma, come take the exam." I stand up and enter the small room. After about an hour I walk out into the waiting area and see Kyo still pacing back and forth.

"Kyo Sohma, come take the exam." Kyo walks through the door leading to the small room I just left.

It seems to take Kyo longer than me to finish because I fall asleep. Kyo pokes me until I open my eyes and then he yells in my ear. I jump out of the chair and fall on my face on the floor a few feet away. "You didn't have to yell!"

"Well you were out of it. I have some bad news though."

I look at him. "What's the bad news?"

He looks at me for a moment and then says, "We both passed."

I laugh at Kyo. "If you really didn't want to go to school, why didn't you fail on purpose?"

He just stares at me and shouts, "Why didn't I think of that!"

I stand up and grab his arm and pull him towards the door. "Yep, just like old times. You haven't changed much. Let's go buy some uniforms; be happy that tomorrow is Saturday."

…

When Kyo and I walk back inside Yuki and Shigure are in a deep discussion. "What are you two talking about?"

Shigure looks up at me and rubs the back of his neck. "Well…there was a…incident in the woods around the house…"

I immediately blurt out, "It involved that girl, didn't it."

Yuki stares at me for a moment. "How do you know about her?"

"Well, I was kind of here at the house since midnight the day before I shown myself…"

"You were hiding in the bushes weren't you?" Kyo smirks while he speaks.

I blush and elbow him in the gut. "Shut up Kyo. So, what were you saying about and incident?"

"Well," Shigure rubs his neck again, "there was a landslide."

I stare at Shigure. "Sh-she's d-de-dead?" But, before he can answer I turn and run up the stairs.

I don't answer when I hear Kyo knocking on my bedroom door and yelling for me to unlock it. He finally stops and everything is quiet for a minute. I hear someone knock on the door and I unlock it. "Come in."

Yuki walks in the room quietly, but he doesn't walk any farther than the threshold. "I know you don't take death well."

I don't turn around to look at him. Death is an open wound to me.

_ I was seven when it happened. I had a brother who was nine and a little sister who was five. That year was when my curse made its appearance. My family knew I changed into a white cat, but no one else knew until that year. I went to the zodiac festival that year. At the festival a boy had bumped into me and I changed. I was waiting for everyone to insult me, for I was cursed with the zodiac cat. What surprised me was that everyone seemed impressed. Akito saw and explained my curse to my family. He called it a blessing. The white cat and the cat are like yin and yang. The white cat is a blessing and the cat is a curse. I didn't trust Akito's word though. Even after my parents told me that I did not have to wear my bracelet, I did. _

_About a month after the festival, my parents died. The day of their funeral Akito told me that he poisoned them. He was not happy that I would take his place._

_After my parent's death, Akito began beating my brother and sister, forcing me to watch. I begged Hatori to erase my memory, but he said Akito ordered him not to. After months of beatings, my younger sister died and my older brother committed suicide._

_At my brother's funeral, I was sent to live with Shigure. Later, I met Yuki and Kyo. They became my new family and if I ever heard anything having to do with death I would hide in my room._

"Yuki, I'm fine. I never met her, so I am only dealing with my memories." I hear footsteps and feel Yuki put his hand on my shoulder.

"You don't have to hold back tears around me Ruki." I turn and lay my head against his chest and let the tears come out.

…

I stare at the ceiling of my room, feeling fatigue avoid me. I sit up and look at my clock. "Its midnight," I whisper. I stand up and begin walking towards the ladder leading up to the roof.

I peek over the top of the roof and see a figure laying there. "Hey," I shout and watch Kyo nearly fall off the roof.

"Are you trying to kill me?"

I walk over and sit beside Kyo. "No, but I can't sleep. Every time I close my eyes I see my brother and sister being beaten. I am afraid that I might dream of something even worse." I hold my head in my hands and let out a deep sigh.

"I am so sorry but I wasn't allowed to talk to you earlier. I don't know why but the door was locked until Yuki knocked on it," Kyo mumbles, clearly hurt.

I lean forward and try to look at Kyo's face but he turns away, "Kyo, just look at me." He doesn't move. "Please…"

He sighs and looks at me. "Why is eye contact so important to you?"

"Well, I don't remember what my parents' faces looked like or their names. Or my siblings' faces for that matter; all I remember is that my sister's name was Lani and my brother's name was Koln. I guess that's why I care so much. I don't want to forget anyone ever again."

I can tell Kyo understands what I mean; he lost his parents when he was little. "You know," Kyo says, "we have a lot of things in common."

"Such as having a horrible childhood, hating Akito, beings cats, losing our parents at a young age. Am I leaving anything out?"

Kyo thinks for a minute and says, "Both of us hate school, and we both run away to the mountains. I think that covers it."

I laugh. "Oh yeah, I forgot about those points."

**Yay…I would say I slaved over this chapter, but I really just pulled up my Word document, copied, and pasted this chapter on a new Word document. **

**Anywho, review!**


	4. Chpt 3: Tough Love

Chapter Three

Tough Love

I walk down the stairs and see Yuki and Shigure eating breakfast.

"Hello Sleeping Beauty. You slept later than I thought you would. In fact, Kyo is still sleeping as well. What kept you from getting a full night's sleep?"

I look at Shigure and yawn. "I was talking to Kyo."

"Oh, you were 'talking' to Kyo."

"We were just talking; that's all. I am tired, so don't make me hit you."

Shigure cringes away from me when I sit down across from him and begin eating a rice ball. Shigure opens his mouth and says, "Where were you two?" I lift my hand and point up towards the ceiling. "Oh, you two were on the roof." I nod.

I glance at the stairs when I hear Kyo's footsteps. Shigure looks at him and says, "We will have a visitor today."

Kyo freezes, Yuki smiles, and I put two and two together. "Oh my god…" I stand up and walk over to the door and lock it.

"Ruki, I think you're overreacting," Yuki says.

"No, overreacting would be baring the windows! You know what she does to me!"

Yuki looks at me and smiles comfortingly; his smile doesn't help me feel better. "Ruki, she does that because she loves you like a sister."

"I think you have it backwards. She hates me like a sister!" I look towards Kyo for support, but find him sneaking out the backdoor. "Oh no you don't," I tackle Kyo to the ground, "if I am going to suffer, so are you!"

Kyo pushes me off him. "You are so greedy!"

I hear someone knock on the door. "Protect me!" I jump behind Kyo.

"No, you protect me!" he shouts, shoving me in front of him.

"I know, on three we run to the mountains."

Kyo shakes his head and we start counting out loud together. "One, two, thr-"

"Kyo, Ruki! I've missed both of you so much," with each word Kagura sounded angrier.

"Kyo, we're screwed," I say before looking at Kagura. "Wait Kagura," she pauses, "I got to know; do you hate me or love me?"

She smiles, "I love you silly."

I look at Yuki. "You should be happy she's a cat person." After I say that I feel myself go flying backwards.

I land on top of Kyo in the yard and watch Kagura run towards us. I black out for a while, but when I come to my head hurts, I am bruised, I am bleeding, and I am laying under Kyo in the yard. "Kyo," I mumble.

"Yeah," He answers.

"Get off me."

"I would, but I can't feel my legs…or my arms for that matter."

"Me too," I say and let the fog in my vision clear.

"I think I can move again," Kyo says as he rolls off of me.

I stare at the sky and sit up, but I sit up too quick and my head starts spinning. "Ugh. I think Kagura lied; she does hate me." I stand up and walk towards the house.

When I make it inside I fall over and just lay there, I'm in too much pain to move. I flinch when I hear Kagura say, "Who did that to you Ruki! Oh my god, that person hurt Kyo too!"

"Kagura," I choke out.

"Yeah, Ruki what is it?"

"You did this to me. You did this to Kyo. How many times do we have to tell you that before you make the connection?" I feel pain shoot through me and 'poof'. I sit up as a cat and turn to look at Kyo, who also changed to a cat. I pick my clothes up with my mouth and run out of sight. Right when I make it into a closet, I am human again. I quickly put my clothes back on and walk out to where I was laying.

Kyo is still a cat. "Ruki, come help me. I can't move," Kyo shouts.

I walk over and pick him and his clothes up and run back inside, praying he would stay changed long enough. I run up the stairs and step into Kyo's room. When I sit him down he changes back to a person. "Kyo put your clothes back on."

I hear Kyo moan. "I still can't move. Could you help me?"

"Can I just go get Yuki?"

"Please help me. Kagura might volunteer."

I sit on the floor and wait until I feel the blush go away. "Fine, I'll help you, but please put your boxers on by yourself."

I hear some rustling and then Kyo says, "You can look now."

I turn around and see him lying on the bed in his underwear. "Are you sure you can't do this yourself?" Kyo replies with a groan, "Fine." I begin pulling his clothes on him and feel myself hold my breath from nervousness. "I'm done, but you owe me." I regret saying that immediately.

"Okay, when you are injured and can't redress, I'll help you." I can't tell if Kyo was serious or not, which scares me a little.

"Can you move?"

"No, do you think I asked you to dress me because I wanted to see how you reacted?"

I don't answer. "I'll call Hatori if you still feel bad when Kagura leaves." I turn and walk away.

When I reach the bottom of the stairs I am questioned by Kagura. "Why were you up there so long? Why is Kyo not down here too? Did he get you to dress him? Why did he ask you? Are you going to answer me?"

I sigh. "Kagura, I will answer your questions if you don't over react." She just stares at me so I continue. "Okay, the big answer is that, Kyo wasn't able to move so…I had to help him…dress."

Kagura isn't the only person staring at me; Yuki and Shigure are staring as well. Shigure has a perverted smile, Yuki looks a little frightened, and Kagura just looks…frightening. "I thought you were my friend, but you aren't. You're competition!"

"I'm your competition in what?"

"You are trying to take Kyo from me!"

I just stare at her blankly. "I have never thought of Kyo that way! And he asked me to dress him! I didn't volunteer!"

Kagura adverts her glare from me to the top of the stairs. "I am going to kill him!"

"Kagura, it's getting late. Why don't you go home?"

She looks at me and her mood shifts immediately. "Okay. I'll see you guys later. Bye!" Kagura waves and walks out the door.

"Wow that was easy." I turn and see Shigure and Yuki walking towards me, still with the strange expressions they had before.

"Were you serious?" Yuki asks.

"About Kyo, yes, I was. But I made him put his underwear on by himself."

Yuki lets out a sigh of relief.

Shigure is looking a little less perverted. "What were you thinking when he asked you to help him put his clothes on him?" I hit Shigure and walk up the stairs to check on Kyo.

Kyo is laying on his bed covered in dirt and blood. "You know you look like crap."

He smiles. "Can you call Hatori?" I nod and pick up the phone.

…

"Whenever I picked up the phone and Ruki was on the other end I thought I was being tricked," Hatori says as he walks into Kyo's room. He looks at Kyo and says, "Kagura?"

I nod. "He can barely move. She must've hit him harder than me. I felt fine after I changed back. Kyo felt horrible as a cat though."

Hatori looks at Kyo. "How did he get up here and dressed if he could barely move?"

I open my mouth, but Shigure beats me to it. "Ruki dressed him!"

Hatori doesn't say anything, he just begins diagnosing Kyo. After a few minutes he begins bandaging Kyo and mumbling words that are too big for my midget vocabulary to understand. When Hatori finishes he tells Kyo to sleep off the pain. As if on cue Kyo changes again.

He looks at me. "Ruki, will you give me a bath?"

I just stare at him. I look at Shigure and Yuki. Shigure is giving me the excuse that he has to go work and Yuki is saying he was going to go buy groceries. I look at Hatori. Hatori says, "I will have to bandage him again, but it would be better if he was clean. His cuts could become infected."

"Can you bath him?"

"No, I can't do that. You'll have to."

I just give him the "Do you hate me?" look. "Fine," I say and pick up Kyo. "I swear, if you change back to a human I will beat you so hard you'll want to be around Kagura," I whisper.

Kyo begins to purr and I have to stop myself from deciding to drown him. "Now I owe you a redressing and a bath and redressing again."

…

Luckily, Kyo doesn't change back to a person until I am sitting him on his bed. "Kyo put your boxers on yourself." I sit in the floor and listen to Hatori prepare his medical stuff for Kyo.

"Can you put my clothes on me now?"

I stand up and begin picking up the clothes. "Just put his pants on him," Hatori says. I do as instructed and begin feeling dizzy.

As I walk toward the doorway to go to my room I change. "Ugh. I guess I was more stressed and injured than I thought. Yuki!"

Yuki walks up the stairs and finds me halfway out of Kyo's room's doorway.

"Help me please." I look up at him.

He picks me up and carries me to my room. "I'll get Hatori to look you over just in case."

I slide under my bed covers just in time to change back to a person. I grip the covers and feel awkward. "Can you step out of the room? I think I have enough strength to put on pajamas." Yuki nods as he leaves.

When Hatori enters the room I am laying on my bed half asleep. "It looks to me you are exhausted; the same as Kyo." He bandages my cuts and ices my bruises. I fall asleep quickly.


	5. Chpt 4: First Day

Chapter Four

First Day

I walk down the stairs to find Yuki and Kyo ready to leave for school.

When we enter the school's gate everyone stares at us. I ignore the stares, but I can tell Kyo is a little on edge. When we enter the school, I go to my locker; it is in between Kyo's and someone else's.

The owner of the other locker walks up to it. "Hi, you must be the new girl and guy."

I look at the girl with short brown hair. "Yeah, I'm Ruki and that idiot is Kyo."

The girl smiles at me. "I'm Mickey. I think I was the last new kid. I transferred here from America last year."

"America? I just returned home a day or two ago. It has been five years since I was in town."

Mickey looks at the schedule I am holding. "I think we have the same classes," she looks at Kyo's schedule too. "Yep both of you are in all my classes."

I smile. It feels good to have a friend that isn't a Sohma or a dude…or a dude-Sohma.

I walk into my first class with Mickey and Kyo. When I sit down I am surrounded by guys and Kyo is surrounded by girls. They start asking me questions and I can't make sense of some of them. Most are about me being a Sohma. After a few minutes, I snap. I shove a girl that was in the circle surrounding me and run to the open window. I hear Kyo snap as well, but I am already sailing down to the earth. Being around people is harder than I remember it being. I hear Kyo land beside me, and I take off in the direction of a ladder that leads to the roof of the school.

Once I am lying on the roof I breathe again. So many people at once, if they were all girls, I could have stayed calm, but all of them were guys, and one wrong move would expose my secret.

"Are you okay?" I look up and see Mickey standing in the door that leads to the staircase.

"Did you take the stairs up here when you saw me jump?"

She nods. "You looked like you were going to kill yourself jumping out the window," Kyo climbs on to the roof, "both of you."

I feel guilty. "I'm sorry if we worried you, but I didn't think you would care, we just met this morning."

Mickey smiles, "Well, I got the feeling that we were meant to be best friends when we met. I am good when it comes to picking good people out of a crowd."

Good people. If only she could know how messed up Kyo and I truly are. "What do you think about Yuki Sohma?"

She stops to think for a moment. "Every girl in school thinks he is a prince. They call him Prince Yuki, but I don't. I can tell he doesn't like all the attention he gets from the fan girls. I can tell he would rather be alone, like you and Kyo."

I feel weird because she is right. He has people skills and makes other believe he is fine around them. He can stay calm for a long time in a crowd, but he would rather be a loner. "Wow, you got that completely right. What about that idiot." I point at Kyo.

"Stop calling me an idiot!"

"You jumped out a window, which makes you an idiot."

"But, you jumped too!"

I pause for a second. I didn't realize I accused him of doing the same thing I did. Mickey opens her mouth and starts giving us her "Kyo impression". "Well, I think he wants to be able to open up around people instead of just being annoying. He never thought of manners as what you should do all the time and around everyone. He seems to let out his emotions in physical contact, instead of talking about them."

"Yep, that sounds like Kyo to me." I stand up and walk over to the door leading to the school's staircase.

"What are you doing?" Kyo asks.

"I am making a better impression. I don't want to be known as the person that jumps out windows and ditches school." I walk down the stairs and hear Mickey catch up to me. We talk as we walk, but before we make it to our class, I hear Kyo follow us.

…

When the last class ends I stand up and walk to Mickey's desk, which is on the other side of the room. She looks at me and smiles. "There is a rumor going around that you and Kyo are twins, another says you two are engaged, and the third says that Yuki is your boyfriend."

I just stare at Mickey. "None of those are accurate. I'm not even sure how Kyo and Yuki and I are related, all I know is that Kyo and Yuki are cousins. Our family tree is pretty big." I have to stop myself from adding "and corrupted" to the end of the sentence.

"Yeah," Mickey says. "I heard that there are two other Sohmas in a younger grade."

I stare at her. "How do I not know that?"

On cue, Yuki enters the classroom with Haru and Momiji behind him. "Look who I found."

Momiji runs over to me and jumps on my back. "Ruki, you're back. I have missed you so much!"

"I've missed you too Momiji! Mickey, this is Momiji."

Mickey follows me as I walk over to Haru, while Momiji clings to my back. "Hey Ruki, It's been awhile." Haru hugs me and something feels weird about it.

"Hey, we better go," I turn and look at Mickey. "Bye. I'll see you tomorrow."

When we make it outside Haru proves my suspicion. He punches Kyo in the jaw. Momiji gets off my back and moves over by Yuki.

Kyo looks at Haru. "I'm not going to fight you right now Haru!"

Haru walks over to me and puts his arms around me. "Hey, Ruki, what do you think about moving to my house?"

Before I say anything, Kyo punches Haru. Haru always knows what makes Kyo want to fight. I jump in between the two of them and get punched in the mouth and the chest. "Okay! Whoever just punched me in the chest is going down!" I start beating the crap out of Kyo and Haru.

When I finish, they are both laying on the ground looking like crap. "Okay, who hit me in the chest because I am not done with you?"

"Umm…Ruki, I think they had enough." I look at Yuki and Momiji who are both frightened to death.

"I guess I overreacted a little…"

Kyo and Haru sit up and look at me. Haru speaks first. "I swear it wasn't me who hit you there. I am positive I hit you in the jaw. I swear."

I turn my gaze to Kyo. He looks scared, but he isn't denying anything. I just shake my head. "Just forget about it, I overreacted."

I help Kyo and Haru up. They aren't seriously injured. Well, sure they are bruised so bad their skin color looks purpley-yellow, but that will wear off…hopefully.


	6. Chpt 5: I Don't Want To Be A Valentine!

Chapter Five

I Don't Want To Be A Valentine!

I sit in my desk and half listen to Mickey as she talks about what her cousin in America emailed her. I nod and smile every few minutes. "You're not listening to me are you Ruki?"

"You know me so well." Mickey doesn't care that I have the attention span of a dead animal, she just wants me to be honest.

"Hey Ruki, I got this for you." I look up and see some guy holding a box of chocolates out to me.

"Thanks," I say as I take the box.

"That's not fair," Mickey says. "I have never gotten chocolate on Valentine's Day."

I smile and open my bag. "Here," I say as I hand her a small box of chocolates. I stand up and walk over to Kyo's desk. I sit the chocolates in front of him and watch his expression.

"Wait…Today is Valentine's Day?"

"Yep, I already gave Yuki his chocolates." Kyo just stares at me. "What?"

"I am just going to stay here. I'm hungry and I want to eat lunch first. After lunch I am running."

I nod and walk back to my desk.

…

At lunch Kyo, Yuki, Mickey and I sit together. After about five minutes, someone yells, "Kyo!"

I straighten up at the sound of Kagura's voice. When she finds us she pushes me over so she can sit in between Kyo and me. "That's Kagura," I whisper to Mickey.

"Kyo, I brought you a giant chocolate heart to show you how much I love you!" She looks at me. "Beat that! I bet you are sorry about being my competition!"

I feel everyone staring at us. "Kagura, I'm not your competition. I don't care." I hear people start to whisper.

"I heard that you and Kyo are engaged!" Someone shouts.

"What!"

I grab Kagura's arm, keeping her from hitting me. "It is a rumor!"

"How do I know you are telling the truth?"

I feel someone tug on my arm and I don't realize what has happened until someone shouts, "Oh my god! Prince Yuki just kissed her!"

…

In my next class everyone stares at me. I see three girls start dancing and singing and the next thing I know they are standing in front of me introducing their selves. I ignore them because I don't care about their names. "Why did you kiss our Prince Yuki you witch?"

"What do you mean 'Our Prince'?"

"Yes our Prince. We know him better than you!"

I just stare at them. "I have known him since I was seven." They just stare at me. "Who are you anyway?"

"We just told you!"

"Well I wasn't paying attention!"

"We are the Prince Yuki Fan Club!'

I yawn. "Do you think I really care?"

They just walk away and death glare me every few steps. Mickey sits down in her seat beside me. "I think you make enemies quicker than friends."

…

I walk home with Yuki since Kyo was dragged off by Kagura. "Hey, I'm sorry I kissed you. I knew Kagura would kill you if she didn't see you weren't competition."

"I know. I'm sorry you had to do it."

"Ruki, I wanted to kiss you."

I stop and stare at the dirt path. "What?"

"Ruki," Yuki says as I run past him towards home. When I reach the house I run inside, past Shigure, and to the roof.

I sit on the roof and stare at the sky, thinking of all that has happened today. But one thing lingers in my mind. Yuki saying, "I wanted to kiss you."


	7. Chpt 6: Too Confused To Be Confused

Chapter Six

Too Confused To Be Confused

I wake up on the roof. My head hurts from thinking hard.

"You spent all night up here. What was on your mind?" I look up and see Kyo standing beside me.

"Yuki said something to me yesterday and I can't figure out what it means."

Kyo sits down beside me. "What did he say?"

I look at Kyo. "He said 'He wanted to kiss me.'"

Kyo jumps up. "I'll kick his ass if you want me to."

"I want you to tell me what he meant." I stand up and walk back inside. I walk into Shigure's office. "Shigure, what does it mean when someone says that 'they wanted to kiss you'?"

He looks at me. "Who said that?"

"Um…Yuki did…"

Shigure chokes on air. Why don't you ask Yuki that?"

"Well…I'm afraid of what he might say."

"Go ask him."

I walk out of the office and go to Yuki's room. Yuki is sitting on his bed reading. "Umm…Yuki…I need to talk to you."

Yuki stands up and grabs my hand. "Let's go to my garden."

We walk to his garden in silence. When we get there it is noon. "I know what you want to ask me and I meant what I said."

I stare at him and feel a blush grow in my face. "What did you mean though?"

He holds my face in his hands. "I meant that I like you. I like you a lot. I have since I met you."

I shake my head and try to run away. Yuki grasps my wrist and doesn't let me run away. "Let go of my arm. I need to go and think."

"You don't have to run away to think."

"If she wants to go and think, then let her." I look up and see Kyo standing on the perimeter of the garden.

I feel Yuki's grip on my hand loosen. I tug my arm loose and run. I don't pay attention to where I was running and collide into Kyo. I push past him and run through the trees.

Love is something I never wanted to find. I know that Akito would have to approve and I don't think I could handle myself. I don't want anyone to suffer like Hatori had.

I stop running and buckle over. I feel all the stress from what just happened and "poof". I lay there as a little white cat and cry. When I poof back I don't have the strength to move.

"Do you need me to do you a favor?" I change back to a cat at the sound of Kyo's voice.

"Kyo, thanks for what you did back there."

"Ruki, can you move." I shake my head. "Would you like me to help you?" I nod. Kyo picks me and my clothes up.

"Do you think I overreacted?"

Kyo makes a disgusted sound. "Are you saying you might like him back?"

"I don't know. I am too confused to think. I'm too confused to be confused."

"Just forget the stupid rat!"

I close my eyes and focus. Do I love Yuki?

"Ruki, you know a lot of people like you, right?"

"What? How would you know?" Kyo doesn't answer. "You know why I don't want to be in a relationship with anyone."

"That's why no Sohma wants to be in a relationship; even if it is another member of the zodiac."

I feel the stress wash away and begin feeling scared; "poof". When the smoke clears Kyo is still holding me and I am staring at his red face.

…

I tug on my shirt. "Kyo, you can look now."

Kyo steps out from behind a tree. His face is still red. "I'm sorry. I forgot that you can't control when you change back…"

"Don't worry about it. Everything is fine."

…

When I walk up to my room, I am still confused. I sit on my bed and hold my head. "Why is it so hard to think?"

I hear my door open and look up to see Yuki. He sits down beside me. "I wish I never kissed you at school. If I didn't then we would still be best friends…"

"Yuki, I just want us to be friends again."

"I want us to be just friends too."

"Well, why can't we?"

Yuki thinks for a few minutes. "I don't know why. Let's just forget about what I did."

I nod. Yuki shuts the door behind him when he leaves. I stare at the closed door. I don't know if I should be more or less confused.

…

**Wow. Ten reviews. That makes me kinda sad considering I wrote this story when I was ten. Everything I have written since I was fourteen hasn't done nearly as well as this has. Well, review and love this all you want! It's finished, I just have to post the chapters.**

**Man I hate this chapter… I don't know why I ever wrote it the way I did. The next one is better though.**


	8. Chpt 7: The Twerp & The Princess

Chapter Seven

The Twerp and the Princess

I shove a rice ball in my mouth. Kyo and Yuki stare at me. "What?" I say around my mouth full of rice.

"Are you trying to choke to death?" Yuki asks as he slides a glass of tea towards me.

"No, I'm trying to beat a record I saw in a book. Some guy shoved fifteen rice balls in his mouth at one time."

"I could beat that," Kyo says as he shoves rice balls in his mouth.

"Your mouth is big enough." Yuki shakes his head side to side.

I grab ten rice balls and start shoving them in my mouth. "I'm almost there."

"Oh yeah, I'm catching up!" Kyo shoves ten in his mouth too.

"What are you idiots doing?"

Kyo and I spit the rice out of our mouth at the same time and look up to see Hiro.

"What do you want twerp?" Kyo lifts him up by his collar.

"If you don't put me down, I'll call the police and report you for child abuse. Idiot, all I want is for you to tell me where Kisa is."

"Why would we know where Kisa is?" Yuki asks.

"Kisa ran away."

I jump up and grab Hiro. "Do you have any idea where she might be?"

"She is somewhere around here. Kisa ran away because children at her school have been making fun of her." I look up and see Haru standing in the door way.

I shove past him and run around searching the area around the house. "Kisa, Where are you?" I yell. Out of the corner of my eye I see the bushes rustle. I run over to the bushes and stick my hand in them.

I feel something bite my hand and I know its Kisa. I pull the small tiger out of the bushes and run back inside. "I found her."

Haru looks at Kisa. "Stop it Kisa. You're hurting Ruki."

Kisa lets go of my hand and looks up at me. "I'm back, Kisa." Kisa changes and I'm holding a small girl in my arms. I run up to my room and pull out some clothes. "Here, put these on."

Kisa puts on the clothes. "You're back."

"Yep, I came home recently."

"Are you going to leave me again?"

I look at the small girl and feel horrible. "I'm so sorry I left you. Kisa, tell me why you ran away."

She looks up at me. "The other kids in my class don't like me. They make fun of my hair and eyes. They call me short too."

I hug her. "We all go through that. But you shouldn't run away. You shouldn't listen to the comments of your classmates. They don't know you like me and Haru do."

Kisa looks at me. "But, you ran away."

"Well…I ran away because it was a matter of life and death. Annoying classmates don't kill. Or at least not until you're my age…"

"Oh, okay. I am so glad you're back. You haven't changed at all."

Is that a compliment? Who knows? I pick up Kisa and carry her down stairs. "Kisa is back to normal."

"I knew her seeing you back would make her feel better," Haru says when I give her to him.

"Where is the twerp?"

"He left."

Kyo laughs. "Well, he insulted everyone, he threatened to call the police, he insulted me again, he called you a whore, I tried to beat him up, he threatened to call the police again, and then he left."

"Wait, he called me what! I swear I will kick him where the sun doesn't shine!"

Kyo laughs again. "I knew you would say that."

…

**I actually like this chapter. The next one is pretty good too. I think there are like fifteen chapters in Faded Memories…and then I wrote about fifteen chapters in a sequel called Reminded Memories. I hate how FM ends though…and RM just seems bad…but, you guys are eating it up so I guess the show must go on. The best part is that I don't have to do any actual work for Faded Memories.**

**Review I guess. More reviews, more chapters.**

**Also, Spiderman fans should check out my new fic "Behind The Mask". It is yaoi though, just as a heads up if you're going to check it out. Remember to review or favorite or do whatever the hell you do.**


	9. Chpt 8: Ayame Go Home

Chapter Eight

Ayame Go Home

When Shigure woke up he started walking around humming and smiling, we all knew something was wrong.

"What do you have planned?"

"Yuki, don't make accusations."

Yuki just shakes his head. "Stop avoiding my questions."

I look around. "Where is Kyo?"

"Kyo went outside. He said he was going to practice his martial arts," Shigure replies.

I walk outside and see Kyo kicking and punching trees. "You need to be nicer to trees."

Kyo smirks. "Says the person that is proud of being an arsonist."

"Lighting things on fire is different than punching and kicking stuff. And I haven't lit anything on fire since I was eleven."

I hear the door open and close and I turn around and see Yuki. "Shigure didn't answer any of your questions?"

He shakes his head. "Kyo, why are you fighting a tree? That won't help you beat me."

"Or me," I add.

Kyo turns and looks at me. "I can beat you Ruki."

"Oh yeah, bring it on Kitty Cat!"

Kyo charges at me, but I move out of the way. When he passes me I spin and kick him in the side. I watch him stand paralyzed for a few minutes. He comes back and punches me in the gut. I swallow my groan and force myself to stay up right.

"Wow, you're getting better at taking hits in the gut."

I ignore him and swing my leg at the back of his knees. I knock him over and he jumps up after a few seconds. He tries to punch me in the jaw but I duck. I grab his arm while it is above my head and throw him over me. He crashes on the ground behind me. I watch him stand up and rush toward. I don't move until he is in front of me, at that moment I flip-kick him in the forehead. He falls to the ground unconscious.

"I think you hit him a little too hard." I hear the smile in Yuki's voice.

Kyo opens his eyes after a few minutes and surrenders. I lean over about to help Kyo up, but a sensation of something under my shirt makes me scream.

"Something is in my shirt!"

Yuki runs over and a snake pops out from my shirt collar. "Ruki, you're home!"

Yuki rips the snake from my shirt. "Ayame go home or else I will skin you alive and burn your body."

Ayame yells, "Shigure, come help me!"

Shigure walks out of the house. "Aya, you're here!"

I just crouch on the ground. "Ayame, how long were you there?"

"Ruki, I was there since Kyo punched you in the gut."

"So…when I felt something on my…it was you…" I breathe deeply and try not to explode.

"He what?"

…

I am sitting in the dining room and eating a rice ball when Ayame steps in the room as a human. "Hello everyone."

Yuki and I ignore Ayame, but Kyo stands up and opens his mouth. I grab him and pull him back down in his seat. "Kyo, just forget it. Ayame is Ayame."

"Oh my god, I just realized something! Yuki's and Ruki's names are the same except for the first letter. If they got married then everyone would have to say Mr. and Mrs. Yuki! Or Mr. Yuki and Mrs. Ruki! It is so funny!

"Ruki already looks like she could be my sister! Her hair is white and my hair is white, but our eyes are different! She has Kyo's eyes, not mine!"

"What, How does she have my eyes?" Kyo stares at me and I ignore him.

"Her eyes are red and yours are red! You two would be cute together too! I wonder what their children would look like?

I blush and glance at Kyo, but he isn't there. "Where did Kyo go," I whisper. I stand up and start walking to the roof.

"Or what if Ruki looked just like Shigure? She would be so cute! Have I ever told you about what happened when I was class president?" I hear Ayame say.

"Yes," Yuki says.

All the words fade away as I climb to the roof. I see a figure lying on the roof. I walk over and sit beside Kyo. "What made you come up here?"

He doesn't answer; all he does is look down at his hands.

"Come on, answer me." I lean closer to him.

Kyo holds my head in his hands and leans close to me. I freeze as he brushes his lips against mine. He stays unsure for a while, but then he leans in more and deepens the kiss.

My mind starts working again and my brain tells me to push him away, but I ignore it. I lean in and feel Kyo pull away. "I'm so sor-"

I cut him off my kissing him again. After a few seconds I lean away. "Don't be sorry."

Kyo looks at me a little confused. "I thought you didn't want to fall in love?"

"You know I'm not good at keeping promises."

…

Kyo and I walk back down stairs and Ayame smiles. "What were you two doing?"

I point at the ceiling. "You two were on the roof," Shigure says. I nod.

Yuki looks at Ayame and says, "Ayame, go home."

"Okay, see you later." Ayame waves and walks out the door.

"That was easy," I mumble.

…

I sit in my room and stare at the ceiling. My mind was wrapped around Kyo. I hear a quiet knock on the door. "Come in," I whisper.

Yuki walks in the door. He walks over and sits in front of me. "I need to do something," Yuki whispers and leans in and kisses me.

This wasn't like the kiss at school. It wasn't strange or quick. I knew what was happening now and I could feel my mind yell for me to push him away or get angry, but I didn't. After a while, I lean away slowly.

"That's all I wanted to do. I just wanted to see how it felt without anyone yelling."

I grip my covers and feel a blush on my face. Yuki stands up and leaves. I just stare into the darkness and think. I lie back down and force myself to go to sleep.

…

**Thank you so much SweetLiars for all of your reviews. I mean seriously…I almost had a stroke when I saw all those new reviews. Thanks. So here it is…the next chappie.**


	10. Chpt 9: Mickey Must Know

Chapter Nine

Mickey Must Know

I stare at the clock on the classroom's wall waiting for class to end. When we are dismissed I walk over to Mickey. "You are going to come to my house."

"What?"

"I said you are going to come to my house today. I need to talk to you."

Mickey nods and we walk out of the school. While we walk to my house I check and make sure no one is around. "Mickey, I have a problem."

"What is it?"

"I think I am in love with Kyo…and Yuki…"

"That's not good. Do they both love you?"

I stare at the dirt. "I know Yuki does, because he told me. I need to ask Kyo."

"So, you invited me over so I could help you decide on which guy?"

"Yeah, pretty much."

"What if that Kagura chick shows up?"

"Then we are screwed."

Mickey laughs. "What do you mean 'we'?"

"I mean that if I'm going down then you're going down with me. That's what best friends are for."

Mickey and I laugh as we walk to my house.

When I walk into the house with Mickey beside me Shigure gets happier. "Oh, so you brought a high school girly friend."

"Mickey, this is Shigure, Shigure, this is Mickey."

"It's nice to meet you. Ruki talked about you all day after the first day of school."

Mickey smiles, I whisper in her ear when Shigure walks away, "He's a pervert."

"He seems nice to me."

"You do not like him." Mickey smiles at me. "Oh my god, you like Shigure."

Kyo and Yuki walk over to me and Mickey. "Why'd you bring her?" Kyo says.

Yuki looks at him annoyed. "Be nice, we have a guest."

Mickey pokes me in the side, which signals "How do you love Kyo?" I ignore her and pull her to the stairs. "Let me show you my room."

Once we are in my room Mickey looks at me with a sort of frightening look. "How do you like that ass hole?"

I hold back a laugh. I remember when she told me that she doesn't cuss. "I have known him longer than you. I know all sides of him."

She just shakes her head. "Well I vote Yuki."

"What if I vote Kyo?"

"That is a horrible idea."

"I'm not sure if I should listen to a person who likes Shigure."

"Shut up."

…

At dinner Mickey begins questioning Kyo and Yuki as subtly as possible.

"So, Yuki, Kyo, what do you think of Ruki's cooking."

"I think she is a fantastic chef," Yuki says.

"It's okay I guess," Kyo says.

"What's that supposed to mean?" I ask Kyo.

He looks at me as if he just realized I was in the room. "I'm sorry. It's really good. I hope I can eat your cooking forever."

Something inside me tells me he is telling the truth. Mickey continues her questioning. "So, what do you two think about how Ruki looks?"

Yuki just looks at me confused. "Well, Ruki is very beautiful."

Kyo doesn't answer. He just stares at me. I look in his eyes and understand. Kyo stands up and walks away. "I'm not hungry."

Mickey gives me a sideways glance. I stand up. "I'm going to go see what's wrong with him."

I walk up the stairs and see Kyo standing in the hallway. "You know you don't have to get Mickey to interrogate me. I'll tell you whatever you want to know." I walk over to where he is standing. He starts walking into his room and I follow. When I step in the room he is right in front of me. "What do you want to know?"

"Kyo, I need to know how you feel about me."

Kyo leans forward and kisses me. "I love you more than anything."

I feel heat in my face. I kiss Kyo and something feels weird. My mind isn't telling me to run. It is telling me stay with him. "I love you too." I feel tears stream down my face.

Kyo holds me in his arms while I cry. Kyo doesn't ask why I am crying because he knows. He knows how frightened I am of Akito. "Don't worry. We don't have to tell Akito. We can run away to the mountains again."

I laugh. "I don't want to run away anymore." I fall asleep.

…

"Wake up Ruki!"

I jump up and look at Mickey, clinging to one of Kyo's pillows half asleep. "What do you want? Why does everyone scream at me while I'm trying to get some sleep?"

"Ruki tell me what happened. When I went to check on you Kyo was holding you in his lap and you were asleep. I asked him but he got all annoying and wouldn't tell me anything."

"I don't need your love assistance anymore. All I need is a friend to support me. So, did you start questioning Shigure when I left?"

She doesn't answer me. "Are you two going to get married?"

"I wish it was that simple. I have to ask for permission from the Head of the Family. He hates me. He is the one that killed my parents and my siblings. He will try to kill me."

Mickey absorbs what I say. She doesn't ask any questions, all she says is, "That's not fair."

I nod, walking to my room, still gripping Kyo's pillow. I pass out on my bed immediately, Mickey lying down next to me to sleep too.

…

**Here's the new chappie. Hope you like it all you people out there. And thanks for the reviews! You are very appreciated.**


	11. Chpt 10: Maybe I Should Leave

Chapter Ten

Maybe I Should Leave

I sit on the roof and watch the sun rise. It has been a month since Kyo told me how he felt. I know we will go see Akito soon. The problem is that I love him. I stare at the mountains in the distance. "Maybe I should just run away again."

"If you run then I'll follow you." I look up and see Kyo.

"I'm just so scared. I don't want you to get hurt because of me."

"You've changed," I look up at Kyo. "Ever since you learned we would have to go see Akito you have seemed so…unRuki. You don't make eye contact and you haven't had any emotions."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean that I wish you would explode like you used to. At least that would let me know you can feel."

I look at Kyo. "If you really want me to explode, then I will. But you brought it upon yourself." Kyo smiles at me.

…

I stand in the yard a foot away from Kyo. "Make me mad."

Kyo smiles again. "Is it bad that I like that task?"

I stand there ready to let out my emotions. I know that I don't have to hold back. Kyo doesn't want me to so I won't.

"You are probably the ugliest person on Earth."

I feel a fire light inside me. It's not just any fire, it's my fire. I let myself charge at Kyo. All he does is stand still. I punch and kick over and over again until I feel better. I stop and look up at Kyo and immediately drop to the ground.

"I hurt you. I hurt you Kyo."

"I know. I wanted you to." Kyo squats in front of me and wraps his arms around me. "You're the girl I fell in love with again."

"But I hurt you." I look up at Kyo's face. It is covered in so many bruises that he could make someone believe his skin color is purpley-yellow.

Kyo kisses me and I forget about him being hurt. He is happy because I am me again.

…

I sit on the roof and feel happy.

"You seem happy."

I look at Kyo. "I am." I look at Kyo's beads. "I wonder how Akito will torture us."

"You are so positive. I can't believe you still wear your bracelet." Kyo holds my wrist and looks at my bracelet.

"I never trusted what Akito said. I think he lied about me not having the other form. I think he wanted me to become a monster in front of everyone. That would make everyone hate me."

Kyo just kisses me. "What did Mickey say when you told her you chose me?"

"Well, she kept saying, 'how do you love that ass hole?'" Kyo smiles; he loves hearing how much Mickey hates him.

Kyo kisses me again. "What do you think people at school will think when they hear or see?"

I look at him confused for a moment before I realize what he meant. "Are you going to walk around telling people or something?"

"No, I am talking about you, aka Mickey."

I just look up at the sky.

…

**In my opinion, the story kinda goes downhill from here, but you guys will probably like it anyways.**


	12. Chpt 11: Last Chance To Impress

Chapter Eleven

Last Chance to Impress

I walk in the school and feel odd. Everyone shoots me sideways glances and whispers. I open my locker and shove my head in it. The whispers and stares are getting to me.

"What's wrong?" I look up at Kyo.

"Everyone is just acting…odd. They keep staring at me."

"Don't worry about it. At least those Yuki Fan Girls aren't stalking you."

"What's wrong with her?" Mickey asks Kyo.

"She is a little on edge. People are starting to get to her again."

I pull my head out of my locker. "I think it's the idea of seeing Akito that's making me feel bad."

"Yeah, he sounds like a bitch." I stare at Mickey. "I couldn't keep my resolution forever. Being around you two make me feel…cussy."

"Okay… that's nice that we have that effect on you." I still feel weird hearing her cuss.

…

I walk out of the school's gate. "Hey, wait up!"

I stop and let Kyo catch up. "What took you so long?"

"I got stopped by a group of crazy girls when I was helping Yuki with some stuff."

I pause. "Helping…Yuki?"

"Yeah, I know it's weird."

I laugh. "You know we are going to go see Akito next week."

"I know. Shigure told me this morning. I am guessing that's why you were acting weird."

I nod. "We'll have to go through with it eventually. I'm kind of afraid of him saying that we _can_ be together."

Kyo doesn't say anything. We just walk in silence back to the house. "Hello you two," Shigure says.

I look at Shigure. "What is it?"

"Well…someone is coming over to visit."

I think for a minute while Kyo franticly locks the doors and bars the windows. "I think you're overreacting."

"Are you crazy? Kagura is coming!"

I feel the realization hit me and I start pushing furniture in front of the breakable walls. "Oh my god, she will kill me!"

I hear footsteps and realize I never locked the backdoor. "Kyo, Ruki, I'm here to visit!"

"Kyo, open up the friggin' door now!" I unlock the door and Mickey comes inside.

"Mickey!" Kagura runs over to Mickey and hugs her.

"I guess I came at a bad time." Mickey backs away slowly but Kagura doesn't let her go. "Kagura, has Kyo and Ruki told you about how they're in love yet?"

Kagura freezes. "What?"

I jump behind Kyo. "Protect me!"

Kyo doesn't try to disagree or run, all he does is stand there. "Kagura, we need to talk."

Kyo grabs Kagura and takes her upstairs. Mickey walks over to me. "See, I knew that would work."

"Oh shut up, I know you were just scared of Kagura."

Mickey backs away from me slowly and bumps into Shigure. I grab her and put my hands over her eyes. "Ruki, what are you doing?"

I look at Shigure and he nods. "Promise me you won't yell." I remove my hand from her eyes and she doesn't yell. "That's Shigure."

Mickey just sits down in front of Shigure. "I knew you were one of them."

Shigure looks at her. "How do you know?"

"I had a distant relative that was a dog. He died before I was born. My dad told me about the curse. He made me promise not to tell anyone. When I met Ruki I knew the Sohmas had the zodiac curse. When I saw Kyo and Ruki jump out a window and fall a distance that would kill an average human I knew they were cats. When Ruki told me about the Head of the Family, I knew she was the white cat."

I stare at her and realize why she knew to run to the roof when Kyo and I jumped out the window. "That explains how you knew so much about us. Did you guess what Yuki is?"

"He's the rat, Kagura's the boar, Momiji's the rabbit, and Haru's the cow. From what I've heard, Ayame's the snake, Hatori's the dragon, Kisa's the tiger, and Hiro's the sheep. I studied the personalities of the zodiac when I was younger."

"Why didn't you tell us?" Shigure asks.

"I didn't want to make an accusation that turned out to be wrong."

Shigure disappears for a second in a cloud of blue smoke. "Sorry, we can't control when we change."

Mickey's face turns bright red for the second she can see. "It's okay."

…

Mickey and I begin making dinner for everyone. "Do you still like Shigure?"

"Yes…" Mickey blushes. "Are Kagura and Kyo still talking?"

"Yeah, I'm going to go check on them." I walk up the stairs and peek into Kyo's room.

Kyo and Kagura are talking. Kagura raises her hand to hit Kyo but he grabs it and keeps her from starting a fight. "Kagura, I've already told you that I love Ruki."

"But, I love you more than her!"

"Kagura, stop it. I don't want you to be talking about her like that. You should leave."

"I've already told you that I am never leaving, so stop trying to get me to."

I push the door open enough for me to walk in. "Kagura, what do you want to eat?"

She glares at me. "I will never eat your cooking ever again!"

I feel the fire inside me flicker to life and threaten to start a fight. I clench my hands into fists. I bite down on my bottom lip and taste blood seep into my mouth.

Kyo moves away from Kagura a holds my hand. "Go down stairs and make dinner. Don't worry; I will be down in a little while."

I nod and look at Kyo. He kisses me lightly and I turn and leave.

When I step back into the kitchen Mickey grabs my arm. "What was happening? Tell me everything."

"Well, Kyo was trying to get Kagura to leave, but she wouldn't. I walked in the room so they would notice me and Kagura said she would never eat my cooking ever again. Kyo told me to come back down here and he kissed me."

Mickey looks at me hard for a moment. "She made you angry. You bit your lip and it is bleeding now."

I nod and begin making rice balls.

After a while Kyo and Kagura come down stairs. Kyo shoves Kagura toward me. "Kagura, apologize to Ruki."

She looks at her feet. "I'm sorry Ruki. I didn't mean what I said, I was just angry."

"It's okay Kagura. I know you were angry. Do you want to eat some dinner?"

…

Kagura and Mickey wave as they walk out the door. I stare at the pile of dirty dishes. "Do you need some help?"

I look up at Yuki. "Yeah, thanks."

We wash dishes in silence until Yuki talks. "You know I still love you."

I nod. "Yuki, can you be like a supporting brother right now. I'm scared that I'll have to go through this alone."

"I guess that being a brother to you is better than being a plain old friend. But, remember you are never alone."

"Thanks Yuki."

"No problem." Yuki hugs me and I feel better; I finally feel like I can sleep at night without having to worry about being alone.

…

**Here's another chappie. Review! :3**


	13. Chpt 12: Akito's Fall

Chapter Twelve

Akito's Fall

I stare out the window of the limo as we drive to see Akito. When we arrive Kyo and I walk in the house.

"Kyo, I don't want to see you right now; I only want to see Ruki." Kyo turns and leaves the room. I stare at Akito. "Bow Ruki."

I bow in front of Akito and know what's coming. Akito grabs my head and slams it against the floor. I twist my head at the last second and avoid getting my nose broken. Akito grabs a handful of my hair and rips my head back. I feel blood drip down and run across my face from my forehead. I ignore the pain and bite my lip which causes it to bleed as well.

"Tell me why you ran away to the mountains!"

I don't want to tell him why because I haven't thought about it since it happened. I can't even remember why I locked the memory away.

"Tell me!"

I search for the memory and find it.

_I was eleven and Kyo was there. Kyo was holding on to my arm. "Why are you leaving?"_

"_I don't want to hurt anyone anymore. I am leaving to learn to control my emotions. I don't want to explode and hurt you again. If I explode out in the mountains then I won't put anyone in danger."_

"_You'll hurt me more if you leave." Kyo leans down and kisses me. I stand in shock for a moment but then I close my eyes and fall deeper into the kiss._

_When I pull away I begin shaking my head frantically. "No. I don't want to fall in love. I don't want to hurt you." I turn and run away from Kyo._

"I ran away because I fell in love with Kyo…"

Akito pulls my hair again so I look at him. "You are a whore! You're a bitch!"

I feel the fire inside me grow but I smother it. I know Akito just wants to see me explode. I wipe my face of emotion and block out his voice.

He begins yelling at me, but I don't listen. "Are you listening to me?"

I reply calmly. "No."

"Well then listen! You are so stupid!"

I hear the speech I gave Kisa replay in my head: We all go through that. But you shouldn't run away. You shouldn't listen to the comments of your classmates. They don't know you like me and Haru do.

I look in Akito's eyes. "You don't know me Akito. You don't know anything about me. All you know is how to push me the right way to make me your puppet. I won't let you do that anymore."

"What do you mean? You are still my puppet. You are here aren't you?"

"I chose to come here Akito."

Akito reaches behind him and picks up a flower vase. I act quickly. I stand up and kick Akito in the center of his forehead and watch his eyes turn white. He falls back down on the ground, dead.

I begin to turn and leave but a small bookshelf catches my eye. I walk over to it and look through the books. I stop when I see a book titled The Blessed Cat and the Cursed Cat. I slide the book inside my undershirt and tuck it in so the book doesn't fall. Then I walk towards the door and step out in front of Kyo, Yuki, Shigure, and Hatori.

"Ruki," Kyo whispers in between kissing me.

Hatori pulls me away from Kyo and examines my forehead. "What happened?"

I look in his eyes. "I'm better off than Akito; he's dead. I killed him."

Hatori runs away, but he returns in a few moments and starts bandaging my head. "I'll take care of Akito later. You are losing too much blood."

…

**The end is near. There are a few more chapters, each one worse than the previous. I just hate how I ended this whole story. Well, too late now.**

**You guys like it, and that's all that matters.**


	14. Chpt 13: Secret of the Cats

Chapter Thirteen

Secret of the Cats

I sit on my bed and grip the book The Blessed Cat and the Cursed Cat. I open the book and read the first page.

_The cursed cat and the blessed cat are both born with an attraction to each other. They are not the only compatible people though; they can have true love with someone else too. If the cats live their whole life without meeting then they will only know love with the other person. But, if the cats meet each other and the other love of their life at the same time then they will only fall for each other. They will not think twice about the other, although the other will fall for them._

"Yuki," I whisper. "I was meant to be with Yuki but I met Kyo at the same time…" I flip the page.

_Both the blessed cat and the cursed cat __must__ wear a token, or something to keep them human. It can range from a bracelet to a necklace. If the cursed cat removes their token then they will change to a grotesque creature. If the blessed cat removes their token then they will change to their white cat form forever._

"That's why Akito wanted me to remove my token…" I begin putting the pieces together. I turn the page.

_There is a way to remove the cursed cat and the blessed cat curse. The two cats must vow love for each other. On their wedding day they must remove each other's token at the same time. If they don't remove it at the same time then they will change. If they don't truly love each other they will change. So, most do not consider this because of the risk._

"Kyo and I could be normal humans…" The thought of not being a cat makes me feel empty. I don't want to be a normal human. I won't tell anyone about this.

I turn through the pages and read things that I already knew. When I make it to the last page there are two charts. One chart is titled "Blessed Cat Love Scale" and the other is the "Cursed Cat Love Scale". I read through the one for me until I find what I'm looking for.

_The Blessed Cat has a 90% chance of falling in love with someone cursed with the rat zodiac._

I read through the chart for Kyo.

_The Cursed Cat has a 93% chance of falling in love with a human._

"That girl," I whisper. "The girl that would have been found by Yuki and Shigure if I hadn't came, if I hadn't made them dinner. They would have found her. She was meant to be his true love. What was her name…Tohru…?" I put all the pieces together slowly.

"What are you doing?" Kyo sits down beside me and I shove the book under the mattress.

"I'm not doing anything. Why'd you ask?"

"Ruki, I saw the book, I saw you hide it too. What's it about?"

"Nothing, I just got scared when you sat down. I didn't hear you come in."

Kyo wraps his arms around me. "Don't worry. I won't keep asking about it. If you don't want me to know then I won't."

I feel guilty hiding the book from Kyo because it is his curse too. "Thanks for understanding, I love you."

Kyo kisses me on my forehead, but I don't feel it where I have a bandage there. "I love you too."

…

**Here's another chapter. Just because.**


	15. Chpt 14: Change

Chapter Fourteen

Change

"Ruki, you must come live at the main house."

I stare at Hatori, angry. "I don't want to go live there, I like living with Shigure and Yuki and Kyo."

"You are the Head of the Family now so you must." I hate how Hatori stays so calm when he talks.

"But… Can I visit Shigure whenever I want?"

A smile lingers under Hatori's lips. "Of course, you can visit whenever you want."

I stare at my feet and surrender. "Fine, I'll come live at the main house."

I hear footsteps behind me. "What are you two talking about?"

I sigh. "Kyo, I must live in the main house."

"I am coming with you."

I look up at Hatori for support but he walks to the limo. "Kyo, you can't, I want you to but you can't."

"Why?"

"Goodbye Kyo." I walk away from him but he grabs my wrist and forces me to look at him.

"I love you," he whispers before he kisses me.

"I love you too." I walk away from him and get in the car. "Let's go."

…

I stare at the large room that I once feared, but now I must live in. I walk over to the small bookcase and look at all the books again. None of them hold my interest; I don't care about any of the Sohma curses that don't involve me or Kyo.

I clutch my stomach and feel something wash over me. I yell for Hatori seconds before I begin to vomit. Hatori picks me up and moves me to his office, but I black out when he lays me down on one of his hospital beds.

My head swirls and my mind shows me pictures from my child hood; my first step, my sister's birth, my parent's funeral, my siblings being beaten, my brother holding the gun to his temple, when I first met Kyo, and so on. My whole life was flashing on the back of my eyelids.

"Ruki, Ruki wake up! Don't go to sleep! Open your eyes! Ruki," Hatori yells but for some reason I can't understand the words. They all become jumbled up and then they blend together. Everything confuses me so I try to sleep. Sleep will clear my head…

…

**Yep, Ruki collapsed. I must have been some twisted eleven year old. You'll see why in the next chapter.**


	16. Chpt15: Life & Death Tastes Like Chicken

Chapter Fifteen

Life and Death Tastes Like Chicken

I hear whispering far away. No, it's not far away, its right beside me; no, it's not whispering, it's talking. The voices sound familiar to me, but I can't put my finger on who is speaking.

"Save her now or-"

"-u know I would but I-"

The voices are so familiar. If only I could open my eyes. I use all my energy to open my eyelids but I tire myself out. Everything fades away again.

When I wake again the voices are clearer.

"Hatori, heal Ruki!"

"Kyo, I am trying to but I can't diagnose her illness while she is unconscious! I need to ask her questions so I don't hurt her!"

Hatori, Kyo, is that you? I try to push the message out of my mind so they could hear it but I am too weak to open my mouth. I try to open my eyes again and light filters through my pupils.

I turn my head and look at Kyo and Hatori standing about a foot away. Kyo is facing my direction but I don't know how to get his attention. I try to push words out of my mouth again but all I do is let out a breath. Kyo looks at me and moves to stand beside me. "Ruki? Are you alright? Can you hear me? Can you see me?"

I can only mumble a quiet, "Kyo…"

Hatori moves to stand beside Kyo. "Ruki, are you experiencing any hunger?"

"No…"

"Any chest pain?"

"Yes…"

"Are you nauseated?"

"No…"

I watch Hatori put things together in his mind. "Have you experienced any drastic weight loss?"

I try to lift my arm but I cannot. I look at Kyo. He lifts his hand and places it at the bottom of my rib cage. I watch his face change to one of pain and fear. "I can feel each individual rib."

Hatori places his hand at the bottom of my rib cage to and his face changes as well. "I think I know what's wrong with her, but I'll have to observe her a little while longer. I'll try a test real quick."

I feel the needle slide into the skin on the inside of my left elbow. I want to flinch away but I am too weak to. I watch Hatori exam the blood and I think about every medical type thing I have ever heard of. My mind races for minutes until it finds what it was looking for.

Hatori gives Kyo my diagnosis the same time I whisper it. "Tuberculosis."

Hatori continues. "She has all the symptoms: Fever, fatigue, weight loss, and loss of appetite, pallor, chest pain, you coughed up blood while you were passed out… I'll get some antibiotics."

Kyo stares down at me, shaking his head slowly. "You are going to be okay."

…

I stand up and move my arms at my sides. "It feels good to move again without straining too much." I pick up half a loaf of bread and a glass of water.

Hatori left to drive Kyo home, so I am alone. I walk outside and feel the cold spring air hit my face. I will now be homeschooled by Hatori, which is a good thing where I have learned I have Tuberculosis. My treatments over the past five weeks have made me feel a lot better. Tuberculosis isn't gone, but it is close to being gone. I take a bite of bread and drink some water.

"Ruki, what are you doing here?"

I turn around and see Kisa. "I live here now. I am the Head of the Family now, so I have to live here. I also have to stay under Hatori's observation for a while."

Kisa walks over to me and hugs me. "I can come see you all the time now."

…

I stare at the ceiling. "I wish Mickey was here. I haven't seen her in a while."

Hatori sighs. "Can you go one day without mentioning Kyo, Mickey, Yuki, or Shigure?"

"Probably not." I smile at Hatori.

"Read a book or study for your pop quiz."

I fall out of the chair I was sitting in. "Pop quiz?"

"You have five minutes to study; the test will be on a diabetic's diet."

I run over to my new desk and flip through my health textbook.

…

**Thank you RANDOM FOX GRRL for your words of encouragement (i.e. WRITE ALREADY!) Yeah, I have an excuse though. Today was my planned update day for everything, but at eight a.m., our internet went out. I just got it back like thirty minutes ago…**

**The next chappie will be update tomorrow or Friday. FAIR WARNING! I'm going on vacation Saturday and won't be back until the end of next week. I do not plan on updating, so you guys will have to be patient. :D**


	17. Chpt 16: Home Again

Chapter Sixteen

Home Again

I whistle some song I heard Kisa play on her flute as I stare out the car window.

"I can tell you have gotten better at entertaining yourself in the car." I hear a smile in Hatori's voice.

It has been seven years since I was living with Shigure. I am now twenty-three and I graduated home school and take college classes over the internet. Hatori finally said that I could move back in with Shigure after I begged him for a day.

"_Hatori please let me move back in with Shigure."_

_He looks at me over the top of the newspaper he is reading. "Do you think you're ready?"_

"_Ready? Yeah," I answer immediately. I have no idea what he means by that, but I think I am._

"_Well, I can't think of any other reason why you shouldn't go back home. Everyone can survive without a Head of the Family for a while. You can just come back if someone needs to talk to you."_

I watch as we approach my real home. As soon as the limo begins to slow I jump out the door. "Shigure, Kyo, Yuki, I'm home!"

I run inside and see Shigure standing in front of me. "Ruki, you're home!"

"I'm here to stay." Shigure hugs me and I hear Yuki walk down stairs.

"Yuki, I'm here to stay."

Yuki grabs me and lifts me off the floor and spins me around. "Ruki, I am so glad you're back." Yuki kisses me. I stay stunned and then he deepens the kiss. "I love you Ruki." I feel his breath on my neck.

I stop myself from running away like a child. "W-where's Kyo?"

Yuki leans away from me and stares in my eyes. "He heard the limo pull up and ran away. He told me to tell you 'Meet me in our secret hiding spot from when we were children.'"

I nod and back away from Yuki. I know I am breaking his heart but I want to see Kyo. I need to see Kyo.

…

I feel my feet grow familiar with the uneven, ragged land that leads to mine and Kyo's place. I pass trees with orange and white circles on them signaling I am on the right path. When the ground evens out I stumble.

I look up and see the chipped white paint on the fence surrounding the garden. I walk slowly through the trees while pink blossoms sail around me. "It's so beautiful." I catch a blossom in my hand.

"It's not nearly as beautiful as you."

I look up at Kyo. "I'm back."

"Ruki, I want to be with you forever." I watch Kyo get down on one knee and I feel my heart race; I want to run away so much, but I stay where I am. "Ruki, will you marry me?"

I feel like I'm going to explode. I bite my lip and watch Kyo's eyes darken. He doesn't walk away though, he continues to wait. I open my mouth, but nothing comes out. "Kyo…"

Kyo looks at me for a second. "Say yes or no Ruki. That would make it a lot easier." Kyo stands up and stares into my eyes.

I throw myself at Kyo and kiss him. "Yes," I whisper and feel everything change. Kyo kisses me back and the mood lightens. I feel Kyo slide the ring on my finger but I don't care.

…

I sit in Kyo's lap and look at my ring. It's not flashy or big, it's perfect for me. It's silver and doesn't have a diamond on it; it has a small topaz in the center. "Kyo, I love it."

"I knew you would."

I lean my head against his chest. "I'm sorry I left for so long."

"Don't be sorry. It was the best thing for you. Your health comes first. What's the use of me having you while you are dying?"

I smile at him. Kyo has really matured since I last saw him. I look up at the sky and think about how my life is going to change.


	18. Chpt 17: The Book That Changes

Chapter Seventeen

The Book That Changes

I stare at the two rings on my finger and feel guilty. I married Kyo last month and now Yuki and I have an odd relationship. He still loves me and I love him too, but I love Kyo too and I don't want to cheat on Kyo.

I look at the fire burning in front of me. I came out the woods to make a bonfire and be alone. "Stupid book, stupid curse, stupid rules," I yell as I throw The Blessed Cat and the Cursed Cat into the fire. I watch the flames encircle the book, but it doesn't burn; the book changes. The cover turns to a bright red and the pages turn black.

I grab a stick and use it to knock the book out of the fire. I smother the flames on the book and then I just sit and stare at it. I touch the cover and pull my hand away before it burns. I grab another stick and use it to open the book.

_This book gives anyone with the zodiac curse the ability to fix a mistake they made as long as they are willing to relive most of their life and possibly change their whole future. This will let the zodiac member travel to point in their life that made a great impact on their personality, beliefs, and/or love._

I stare at the book and feel an idea creep into my mind. If I go back to when Akito told me to take off my bracelet after my family died I could take this book and deliver it to Kyo. I'm sure Kyo was at the dojo when that happened.

I hold the book up and feel it burning my hands. "I want to go to after my family died and when Akito told me to remove my bracelet."

Everything around me begins to blur and I feel myself fade away.

**...**

**!IMPORTANT: PLEASE READ!**

**This is a big decision you guys, and here it is: would you rather there be an EPILOGUE and the whole story ends there, or would you rather have a SECOND story picking up with the would-be epilogue as the first chapter?**

**If you guys would rather have a SECOND story, updates will be scattered (I only have like four chapters for the second story and they must be rewritten). Also, the writing style will be different. It will be how I write now (See my other fic: Behind the Mask) which is a lot more serious and sarcastic with few cutesy things. You guys know this story is like 100% cutesy.**

**But, if you'd rather have an EPILOGUE and the story ending for good, then there won't be any more Fruits Basket from me in the form of Ruki. There might be something later on that will most likely be yaoi (this is the only straight fic I am actually working on right now). But, I'll probably have some sort of Furuba yaoi pop up if I do the SECOND story thing.**

**THIS IS ALL UP TO YOU GUYS! LEAVE YOUR VOTE ON THE COMMENTS PAGE! ONCE IT BECOMES OBVIOUS WHICH OF THE TWO OPTIONS IS MORE POPULAR FOR YOU GUYS, I WILL DO THAT OPTION! **


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